Icon of the Mother of God of Koloch

[1]Commemorated on July 9

The Koloch Icon of the Mother of God manifested itself in 1413 during the reign of Tsar Basil I, 15 miles from the city of Mozhaisk, in the vicinity of Koloch in the Smolensk region of Russia. A peasant in the village by the name of Luke found the holy icon and took it to his home. At that time, one of the members of his household was paralyzed. The sick man put his forehead to the icon with faith and received complete healing.

This miracle became known through the surrounding area, and many of those who suffered began to flock to the wonderworking icon, receiving help from the Mother of God. Later, Luke took the icon to Mozhaisk, and from there to Moscow. At the capital, Metropolitan Photius, together with a gathering of clergy and a multitude of people, met the holy icon. As the icon was carried through Moscow many of the sick were healed of their infirmities. The icon was later returned to Mozhaisk.

At the place where the icon appeared, a church was built in honor of the Mother of God. Here the holy icon was housed.

With the offerings of the peasant Luke and other Orthodox faithful, Prince Andrew Dimitrievich built a monastery nearby the site called the Kolochsk or Mozhaisk.